The latest figures from the National Readership Survey illustrate the huge growth in readers enjoyed by the Evening Standard since it went free in November.
The Standard distributes some 600,000 free copies a day in London and according to the NRS had an estimated readership of 1.35m a day in the six months to March, an increase of 130 per cent year on year.
The NRS is based on surveys of around 36,000 people over the course of a year, rather than actual circulation, so is only an estimate. Readership estimates are far higher than actual circulation because each newspaper copy is often read by more than one person.
The NRS national newspaper readership breakdown
(Six months to March 2010, with year on year change)
Dailies
Daily Telegraph: 1.76m, up 1 per cent
The Guardian: 1.1m, down 3 per cent
The Independent: 540,000, no change
The Times: 1.7m, down 4 per cent
Daily Express: 1.4m, down 9 per cent
Daily Mail: 4.7m, down 2 per cent
Daily Mirror: 3.2m, down six per cent
Daily Record: 909,000, down 18 per cent
Daily Star: 1.6m, up 10 per cent
The Sun: 7.7m, down 1 per cent
Sundays:
The Observer: 1.2m, down 18 per cent
The Sunday Telegraph: 1.7m, up 2 per cent
The Independent on Sunday: 601,000, down six per cent
The Sunday Times: 3.2m, down 1 per cent
The Mail on Sunday: 5.2m, down 8 per cent
Sunday Express: 1.6m, down 1 per cent
News of the World: 7.7m, no change
The People: 1.3m, down 11 per cent
Sunday Mail: 1.1m, down 13 per cent
Sunday Mirror: 3.9m, down 1 per cent
Sunday Post: 785,000, down 23 per cent
Daily Star Sunday: 949,000, down 13 per cent
Email pged@pressgazette.co.uk to point out mistakes, provide story tips or send in a letter for publication on our "Letters Page" blog
